Okay, I know, I know, this isn’t a real blog today. I can’t help it. I’m swamped and I’m about to write a pivotal scene in FEAR NO EVIL and I just don’t have an ounce of creative energy left to think of a blog. I started two blogs–one about linear writing, another about women who kill–but they’re blah and just going to have to wait for another day. My muse is working overtime on only one story right now. So this is easy: I love reading blogs. I have many listed on my website but I’m sort of behind… Read More

I found this circulated on one of the writing loops I’m on. I don’t know who created it, but I thought there were some interesting points of discussion. Nine Marks for a Bestselling Author 1. Perseverance is the key 2. They write and write and write 3. They like to write and write and write 4. Promotion is constant 5. Marketing is critical 6. Fans are an important asset 7. The more success the more pressure 8. They’re grateful 9. There is no single profile for a best-selling author Sounds like good advice. Let’s break them apart and discuss them…. Read More

The other day I was reading Theresa’s post over at Magical Musings about how her mom always thinks Theresa’s unhappy or depressed because of her dark stories. This led me to be grateful for my own mother who loves my books and doesn’t think I should be locked up–either in a loony bin or prison. But it also got me thinking about my husband, who reads all my books, and some of his concerns. He doesn’t like some of the plot points. For example, he didn’t like the near-rape sex scene between the villain and the woman who controls him…. Read More

What is a romance? You might as well ask “What is Blue?” or “What is Good?” I say “Blue” and think about a rich, royal blue. You might envision sky blue. Or teal. Or violet. But, you say, violet is purple. Is it really? What is purple? A mixture of blue and red. So purple has blue in it, but some purples have more blue than others. That’s what makes the color spectrum so beautiful–every shade is represented, and they’re all gorgeous. (Except for puce, but we won’t go there.) RWA has defined romance, and has defined “romantic suspense” which… Read More

I have no ghost stories. I love hearing them, though. When I was in Victoria for the KOD retreat in September, I went on a Ghost Walk. The host was fabulous and though it was only an hour and a half, I learned so much about the history of the area, including the famous Empress Hotel. Believe or not, there are a lot of weird and unexplained things that go on in the world . . . There’s also a lot of tragedy in the world. In Sacramento County early last Friday morning, nearly one week ago, Sheriff’s Deputy Jeffrey… Read More

Okay, admit it. You’ve read books replete with errors. With typos and missing words and things that just don’t make sense. Who’s the first person you blame? The Author. Right. Been there, done that. It’s not always the author’s fault. Page proofs are the final stage before publication. You get the book in typeset form. For my publisher, this means a mock-up of each page, complete with printer marks, chapter headings, what-have-you. The dedication, the acknowledgments, and my favorite page–the inside page that tells the reader that this is a work of fiction, and it’s bears my name next to… Read More

Thanks to my friend Edie for the information that it takes 30 days to develop a habit. That’s great information to have . . . and I think it’s very true. Samuel Johnson said: The chains of habit are generally too small to be felt until they are too strong to be broken. Truer words were never spoken. Consider bad habits. How hard it is for people to quit smoking. To stop drug use. To stop biting their nails. But this goes true for good habits as well. Take brushing your teeth. When you form that habit early, the one… Read More

Stephen King thinks flashbacks are weak writing. (Oh, and speaking of King, he’s the recipient of the 2007 Grand Master award from Mystery Writers of America. Read more on my blog here.) When I read that, in his book ON WRITING, I was hurt. Why? Because I had just written THE HUNT and I’d included lots and lots of flashbacks. I didn’t want to think that I was a weak writer relying on worn plot devices to tell my story. Then I thought about the story, my story, and realized that using flashbacks made the book better, the story stronger… Read More

To prologue or not to prologue, that is the question . . . How many of you have entered contests and been told by one or more judges that you “can’t” or “shouldn’t” have a prologue? (raising hand) Do you like prologues? Dislike them? Are neutral? How many of you skip prologues altogether? When I first heard that some people skip prologues, I was shocked. That’s like *gasp* reading the end of the book first. Or skipping chapter seventeen just because you don’t like the number seventeen. Prologues have a purpose. Or they should. I never took the debate about… Read More

First, I want to thank Tess Gerritsen and Barbara Colley for being our guests this week at Murder She Writes. We really appreciate them taking the time! There have been a few technical difficulties. Barbara responded to everyone’s comments, but unfortunately they seem to have disappeared. We’re looking into it. (Actually, we’re having our web guru at Stonecreek Media, look into it.) If you’ve posted something that has disappeared or never showed up this week, please email us. I need to ship out my copyedits on SPEAK NO EVIL by the end of today. I have 100 more pages to… Read More